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Republican India on the 78th Independence Day on August 15, 2024 presents a grim picture. It’s leader the Prime Minister is heading a union government of a divided nation for which he is himself responsible as can be deduced from his divisive, communal and polarizing campaign hate speeches during the General Elections to the Lok Sabha 2024 that concluded in June 2024 and his government’s discriminatory and minority bashing actions since 2014. Even after the BJP has been reduced to minority and formed government on the crutches of three supporting parties from Andhra Pradesh and Bihar, his functioning as an autocrat has not mellowed as expected.

It was clear to everyone that SEBI was stonewalling a proper investigation into the charges levelled by the Hindenburg report, except those who had other reasons to pretend otherwise. But there was no clarity as to why SEBI was doing so. Now that Hindenburg has disclosed SEBI chairperson’s and her husband’s investment in one of Adani’s shadow companies the Adani group allegedly used to do questionable transactions, the jigsaw puzzle stands solved.

During the financial year 2023-24, bank loans worth Rs 1.70 lakh crore were written off, as revealed in Union Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary’s recent written reply in the Rajya Sabha. It makes the total written off amount to swell to Rs16.26 lakh crore since April 2014 to the end of March 2024. The biggest beneficiaries of these are big Indian corporates and businesses.

India seems to be filled with a giddy rapture as the Rs.11.12-lakh crore Tata group has ventured into semiconductor fab production by simultaneously taking up two projects – one in Gujarat and the other in Assam – to put the country on the world microchip makers’ map. The two plants will have a combined investment of Rs.1,18,000 crore. The government itself appears to be flushed with excitement as the country will soon have its own semiconductor fab production units. While the indigenously built Assam plant is expected to become operational next year, the giant Gujarat plant, in collaboration with Powerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp (PSMC) from Taiwan, is likely to be in production by 2026 end.

The former Prime Minister of Bangladesh, Sheikh Hasina, abruptly left her country on August 5, causing immediate concern in her country and the region.

When the Supreme Court Chief Justice of Supreme Chandrachud says people are fed up with the way our courts function, there cannot be a more serious indictment of the judicial system. His assertion that the judiciary should not be an institution run solely by judges for judges is a significant critique that underscores systemic issues within India’s legal framework. The perspective is not just a reflection of personal discontent but an observation that has been echoed in the Supreme Court’s various judgments and statements over time.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has thrown his hat into the quota within quota ring, that is set by a recent Supreme Court verdict. Though the verdict has allowed a structured reservation policy for SC in job and education by subcategorization of more backward castes for sub-quota relative to other castes in the group, it has wider implication for ST and OBC reservations too, especially in the light of the ‘creamy layer’ issue that it referred.

Social media is flooded with the messages deprecating Chairman of the Rajya Sabha Jagdeep Dhankar for his behaviour on Friday in the house and more for his obstinate observation for Samajwadi Party member Jaya Bachchan. While a message reads “he symbolises arrogance & impatience”, the other says “Dhankar is a misogynistic piece “. Yet another mentioned ”he is as shameless as any other sanghi”. Even a BJP sympathiser wrote “The Chair is to carry the team & not threaten. That is not a forte of any BJP leader!” There are numerous such messages.

The Narendra Modi government has approved fisheries projects worth Rs 8666.28 crore under the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY) over the past four financial years. It marks an important step towards the formalization and modernization of India's fisheries sector. This was revealed by Union Fisheries Minister Rajiv Ranjan Singh in the Rajya Sabha today.

Manish Sisodia got bail and arrived at his residence on August 9. Sisodia was the Deputy Chief Minister of Delhi. Then, he drew up Delhi's excise policy. He was arrested and jailed 17 months ago. In fact, people sort of forgot Manish Sisodia as the news cycle picked up other breaking news. Sisodia applied for bail three-four times but the courts wouldn’t yield and Sisodia remained incarcerated. Time elapsed and Friday, the Supreme Court said “enough” and granted him bail.